A missing pet story that tugged at the hearts of many locally has a happy ending. Faith, the dog lost when she ran from a Sept. 12 vehicle accident in Fayetteville, is back with her family after she was found Sunday.

Faith is the family dog of Jasmine Valquez, who was in town fleeing Hurricane Irma. Valquez’s attempts to find the dog were unsuccessful, and she had to return to Daytona Beach to attend to her home.

Residents, animal advocates and City of Fayetteville Police stepped up efforts to help find Faith and get her back to her family. Lost pet recovery specialist Lovy Myers was among those on the hunt, putting up signs around town and employing a tracking dog.

“I just can’t believe it,” Valquez told Fox 5 in an interview, saying she lost her mind when she heard Faith had been found. “I can’t even imagine that this world has these types of people. It makes me so happy.”

Myers got a call from the Fayetteville IHOP by someone who has spotted the dog laying in the grass nearby. By the time she got there, Faith had moved to the nearby neighborhood behind Fayette Newspapers.

“A homeowner, she had out a golden retriever in the yard, and Faith loves other dogs, so she ran over to the golden,” Myers told Fox 5. “Because they’d seen my sign, they knew it was the missing dog, so they were able to put a leash on her. When I got here all I had to do was talk her into getting into the car.”

The dog, who was missing 12 days, was taken to the vet as a precaution, but found to be in good healthy other than some abrasions and slight dehydration.

Faith and Jasmine were reunited at the Fayetteville Police Department Sunday night, where they returned home to surprise Jasmine’s son at school Monday.

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Christopher Dunn has been the sports editor for Fayette Newspapers since 2011, in addition to running Fayette Game Day magazine. He is a graduate of Fayette County schools, as well as a graduate of Georgia State University with a degree in journalism. Follow him on twitter @fayettesports.